Style

Beer Club: The Ales of March

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Yes, my beer pun abilities have declined considerably. I have no idea what I’m going to do for April. Anyway, this month’s beer club convened at an English style pub called The Whip Tavern. We’re enjoying a freakishly large rainstorm right now, but I suppose that’s part of the British experience, right? The pub is kinda in the middle of nowhere, but a few of us were able to brave the storm and the flooded roads to attend, and we were rewarded with some wonderful beer.

  • 21st Amendment Fireside Chat: A winter seasonal at the end of its run, this one was a dark brownish color with a hint of red and about a finger of head. Aroma was sweet with a hint of caramel or maybe toffee. Taste was similar – very sweet (again with the caramel or toffee) and doughy with a twang of something spicy in the finish. A relatively strong beer, the alcohol was present, but subtle. A pretty full body and warming mouthfeel as well. I don’t know what the Beer Advocate geeks are smoking though, as this is certainly not a C+. More like a B or even a B+. Perhaps the fact that I was having it on tap made a difference (apparently this is typically seen in cans). (Beer Nerd Details: 7.9% on tap. Drank out of a wine glass.)
  • Twin Lakes Tweeds Tavern Stout: The uber-local Twin Lakes brewery doesn’t even bottle or can their beers – they’re only available on tap. This one was an extremely basic stout. Dark brown in color, with hints of amber when held to the light. Roasted aromas in the nose, with a very basic stout-style taste. Roasted malts, slightly bitter finish. An enjoyable beer, but also probably an example of what I’m not a big fan of in a stout. Plenty of carbonation and a medium body, just not a whole lot to go around in terms of flavor. Again, not a bad beer, but certainly not a great one either. C+ (Beer Nerd Details: 5% ABV on tap. Drank out of a half-pint glass.)
  • Yards Extra Special Ale (on Cask): Again! Since this was an English style pub, I was really hoping for a cask conditioned beer… and it turns out that what they had was the same one I had last weekend. When we first got there, the waitress said they had Victory Yakima Glory on cask, which I immediately jumped on, but apparently it kicked right before we arrived. Dammit. I still ordered a half-pint of the ESA, and it was quite enjoyable (again!) though perhaps not quite as good as it was at the brewery. (Beer Nerd Details: 6.3% ABV on cask, drank from a half-pint glass)
  • Innis And Gunn Oak Aged Beer: This being an English pub with a wide variety of imported beers, I figured I should actually avail myself of such an opportunity. After consulting the menu (and beer advocate on my phone), I settled on this beer. On the bottle, it says it’s aged for 77 days in oak barrels (which seems kinda short to me, but what do I know?)

    Innis And Gunn Oak Aged Beer

    I was a little worried about the fact that this came out in a clear colored bottle (most beer bottles are brown because they protect against light, which can damage beer and cause off flavors), but it was ultimately pretty enjoyable. It’s a clear, golden colored beer with an ample white head. Aroma seemed kinda funky, maybe even a bit tart. Taste was sweet with an almost white wine tint to it (just a hint of tartness there), which seemed strange. Perhaps it did get hit by some light on its journey to America. Well regardless of whether or not it was intentional, it tasted interesting to me. Again, I’m not terribly well versed in oak aging of beers, but there was a good amount of complexity in the taste. Light to medium bodied, not a lot of carbonation, but just enough to make it go down easy. Again, a very interesting beer. It was actually quite expensive, so I’m not sure it was worth it, but at the same time, I’m glad I got to try it. B (Beer Nerd Details: 6.6% ABV bottled (11.9 oz). Drank out of a half-pint glass.)

  • Tetley’s English Ale: Not a cask ale, but it was so smooth and creamy that it kinda felt like one. Unfortunately, that’s just about all it had going for it. It had a rather bland taste, kinda like a toned-down Yards ESA. On the one hand, it’s not something I’m going to go out of my way for, but on the other hand, it’s certainly not bad and I could probably drink these all day without getting too bloated or drunk. At 3.6% ABV, it’s not exactly a monster, but I can see why the British are into their session beers (i.e. this is something you could drink all day and not get too sloshed on). The name Tetley reminds me of tea, and I almost even detected a flavor of tea in the beer, but I’m pretty sure they have nothing to do with each other (was I imagining things then?) I’ll give it a C+, which is fine for what it is. (Beer Nerd Details: 3.6% ABV on tap. Drank out of a half-pint glass.)

I was very disappointed by the lack of Victory Yakima Glory on cask, and I also attempted to order a bottle of Brewdog Punk IPA, but alas, they were out of it. Nevertheless, great times were had by all, and I ordered me some Bangers and Mash which turned out to be quite fantastic. There was also quite the delicious toffee cake desert thing that went quite well with the Innis And Gunn Oak Aged Beer. I look forward to our triumphant return to the Whip (probably sometime this summer).

A Beertastic Saturday

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So this past weekend was a most unexpected experience. On Friday, I learn that a brother of a friend of mine was having a bachelor party in Philly on Saturday. I had nothing better to do, so I hopped on a train and met up with everyone in the city. It turns out that a bunch of us were big beer nerds, so it wound up being a pretty exciting day for beer (amongst other things).

Things started off unimpressive on the beer front though. We had club box seats for the Flyers game on Saturday afternoon, which means free beer… but the choices were severely limited. I settled on Bud and Bud Light, and drank quite a few. I must have built up a bit of a tolerance with all my recent big beer drinking though, as I was barely buzzed by the end of the game (a disappointing third period loss, though some of my friends were Sabers fans, so they were at least happy). After the game, we hopped on the train again and ended up at the Yards Brewery:

Yards Brewery

We didn’t get to take a tour, but we hung out at the restaurant/tasting room for a while. I had a few interesting beers:

  • General Washington’s Tavern Porter (Bourbon Barrel Aged) – Exactly what I was hoping to find! I commented in my earlier review of the base Washington’s Tavern Porter that the bourbon barrel aging could help impart some additional complexity and flavor notes to an already solid beer. I’m certainly not an expert when it comes to picking out barrel aging flavors, and I didn’t drink both versions of the beer (even though both were available – perhaps a future Double Feature is in order), but I really enjoyed it.

    Yards Washington Tavern Porter (bourbon barrel aged)

    Perhaps it was just that I had spent the majority of the afternoon drinking Bud Light, but I did enjoy this quite a bit. The last time I had this, I felt like the mouthfeel was a bit too light. The bourbon barrel aged version seems to be fuller bodied than the standard version, and there’s a bit of a bite to the beer which I can only assume is coming from the bourbon. Otherwise, the standard roasty chocolate flavors that characterize the style dominate the beer (as they should). The barrel aging effect is subtle, but there seemed to be enough additional complexity to make it worthwhile. I’ll reserve judgement in lieu of a true double feature, but hey, if you see the Bourbon Barrel Aged version of this beer, get some! Porter style beers are still not my favorite, but I’m definitely acquiring a taste for them and I might be convinced to up my rating of the standard version of this beer to an A-, though again, I’d like to taste both together to get a better feel for the differences. (Beer Nerd Details: 7.0% ABV on tap, drank from a small goblet)

  • Thomas Jefferson’s Tavern Ale – Alas, no bourbon barrel aged versions of this around (perhaps they’ll have some later in the year). The last time I had this, I felt that the alcohol dominated the taste, leading to an oily mouthfeel that I thought wasn’t especially well balanced with the rest of the beer. Well, maybe I got a bad bottle, as the goblet I got straight from the brewery was much better. The sticky alcohol flavors and oily mouthfeel were nowhere to be found. The alcohol was certainly present in the taste, but it’s much better balanced with the malt backbone, and the carbonation lead to a better mouthfeel. Overall, I was quite pleased. I’d probably revise this up to a B+ (Beer Nerd Details: 8.0% ABV on tap, 12 oz in a small goblet)
  • Extra Special Ale (on Cask) – I’d never had a beer on cask before, and boy was this a revelation. I’ve had the ESA before and while I enjoyed it, I also didn’t think it was anything special (with the caveat that I was drinking it in less than ideal conditions). But the version on cask was quite different.

    Yards ESA from a cask

    It poured a dark amberish color with a thick, creamy head (almost like you’d get out of a nitro tap). The taste has a nice malt backbone with some bitterness in the finish, but the real difference here was the mouthfeel and carbonation. There is some light carbonation, but it’s not nearly as strong or assertive as it was from the bottle. Sometimes beers with low carbonation seem, well, flat, but not in this case. It was perfectly balanced and a joy to drink. I can see why our British friends are obsessed with “Real Ale” (which is what they call ale served from a cask), as this would make an excellent session beer (though it’s perhaps a bit too strong for that sort of thing). I’m going to have to find me some more places around here that serve cask beer. Provisional B+, maybe even an A- (though that’s probably the novelty of the cask talking). (Beer Nerd Details: 6.3% ABV on tap, drank from a pint glass)

We had reservations at Fogo De Chao for dinner, so alas, we had to leave the brewery. The restaurant is a Brazilian steakhouse, one of them all-you-can-eat affairs where you have a little card in front of you that you can turn “green” to let the servers know you want more food. Leave it on for a while and you’ve got a plate full of roasted meat. It’s amazing. Beer selection was a bit sparse, so I started with the only interesting beer on the menu:

Xingu Black Ale

Xingu Black Beer – Pours a dark, well, black color with minimal head. Aroma of sticky dark fruits, with a surprisingly sweet taste to match. I got a distinct flavor of raisins out of this, which was a rather interesting beer and went with the massive helpings of meat rather well. Despite the black color, there was little in the way of roastiness, which was surprising, but welcome. I wouldn’t say that it was particularly special or earth-shattering, but it was pretty tasty for such a low ABV beer and definitely the most interesting thing on the menu. I would give it a solid B. (Beer Nerd Details: 4.7% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank from a small goblet.)

At this point, we had sorta switched to Wine and I was also downing water like crazy, but it was otherwise quite an enjoyable meal. Many perfectly prepared hunks of meat were had by all, full stomachs and meat sweats all around. Our hope at this point was to hop across the street and hit Lucky Strike Lanes, but we were informed that the wait was 3 hours, and thus began nomadic trek through the city, eventually ending up on Delaware ave at about midnight. Mass transit had stopped running at this point, but we were only about 15 blocks away from the hotel, so we decided that hey, if we’re going to walk 15 blocks, we might as well stop and have drink at every opportunity. I had a few other drinks, including a Victory Golden Monkey (one of my favorites, so I’ll save that for its own review at some point), but the real fun began when we arrived at Eulogy (previous trip to Eulogy here). Of course, we had to move further away from the hotel to get there, but the beer nerds in the crowd all wanted to check the place out. It was surprisingly not that crowded, and I ended up having two good beers before last call.

  • Eulogy’s Busty Blonde – House Beers are an interesting breed. The first time I saw one (at this point I don’t remember where), I assumed it was brewed in-house and ordered it eagerly, only to find that it was basically some boring Genesee monstrosity (or something, I don’t remember what it was). I’ve since learned that nearly all house beers are like that – a macro beer that the restaurant just came up with a new name for in the hopes of suckering naive patrons like myself into buying it. But I always give it a try, and being the awesome Belgian Beer Bar that it is, it looks like Eulogy’s house beer is actually brewed in Belgium by Brasserie La Binchoise (of course, I’ve never heard of them or any of their beers, but they still seem a lot more promising than a relabeled American macro). I didn’t know it at the time, but I figured I’d give it a shot anyway, trusting that Eulogy wouldn’t steer me wrong (apologies for the craptacular picture, but that’s all I could get):

    Eulogy Busty Blonde

    And it turns out to be quite good. Beer Advocate is listing it as “retired”, so maybe that’s not the same as what I was drinking, but it seemed like an archetypal blonde ale. Cloudy light yellow/orange (er, blonde?) color, some citrus and spiciness in the nose, and a taste to match. It was quite refreshing at that point in the night, if perhaps a bit less complex than some of the bigger beers I’d already had. Definitely worth a shot, I give it a provisional B. (Beer Nerd Details: 6.5% ABV (on tap). Drank from a big goblet.)

  • Mikkeller Koppi Coffee IPA – I hadn’t had anything that was particularly hoppy all day, so after consulting with the ever-helpful bartender, I settled on this beer, despite the fact that I generally dislike coffee (see here for some respectful coffee hate). They poured me a little taste of it, and it was decent, so I got me a full snifter of the stuff and was glad I did. (Again, sorry bout the picture quality, it was dark and, uh, I was drinking.)

    Mikkeller Koppi Coffee IPA

    It was also a pretty good beer. It’s not my favorite IPA style beer, but it was quite good (especially for a non-double IPA). Strong citrusy hop aromas, a nice sweet, malty start with bitterness in the finish, and just the right twang of coffee in the finish and aftertaste. I wonder if I’d even have picked up that it was coffee if the bartender didn’t tell me (or if the name of the beer didn’t say it), as it’s really quite subtle. Given that I don’t really care for coffee in my beer, that subtlety is actually quite nice. It adds complexity and flavor without overpowering or dominating the taste. A provisional B+! (Beer Nerd Details: 6.9% ABV (on tap). Drank from a snifter.)

That was pretty much the end of beer-related happenings of the night, which, of course, featured lots of other happenings that are perhaps best left undocumented (nothing inappropriate, I swears). There were still a few hours left in the night, including a trip to some strange pizza place where I burnt the shit out of my mouth (good thing I was done drinking at that point). I haven’t quite partaken in this sort of all day affair in a long time, but it was a welcome surprise and a great time.

Dubbel Feature

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See what I did there? Sorry, I can’t resist beer puns. The numeric Trappist beer style conventions are a bit odd as there really isn’t much consistency between them or a real, objective measure. In general a dubbel is stronger than your average beer, and a tripel is stronger than a dubbel, and a quadrupel is stronger than a tripel. But then, it’s easy to find examples of each that are stronger or lighter than expected. In any case, the dubbel is a really interesting style. It’s very strong, but not too strong. It’s usually a dark color beer, but it doesn’t usually feature the roasty flavors of stouts and porters. As such, it makes an excellent gateway beer for folks who don’t think they like “dark” beers. I’ve been making my way through a variety pack of St. Bernardus beers, and of course, there are two different dubbel style beers to be had. St. Bernardus isn’t technically a “Trappist” brewery since the beer isn’t brewed within the walls of their Trappist Monastery, but in general, their beers are every bit as good. So here are their two dubbels:

St. Bernardus Pater 6

St. Bernardus Pater 6 – The word “Pater” is latin for “father”, which seems rather appropriate (if not especially descriptive) for a beer directed by Trappist monks. It pours a dark red/brown color with a big head featuring lots of bigger bubbles and some lacing as I drink. Smells of dark fruit and bready Belgian yeast, with some spiciness and maybe even pepper as well. Taste is fruity, sweet, and spicy. Very well balanced and surprisingly easy to drink (perhaps due to the relatively low ABV). Lots of carbonation and a medium/full body. As dubbels go, this is a bit light, but still fantastic. Perhaps the Belgian version of a session beer! Of course, at 6.7% ABV, that’s way too high, but still manageable. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 6.7% ABV bottled (330 ml). Drank from a goblet.

St. Bernardus Prior 8

St. Bernardus Prior 8 – A “Prior” is also a term meaning “father”, but it is generally considered to be just a step below Abbot in the hierarchy (which makes sense, considering that the next beer up in St. Bernardus’ lineup is the Abt 12, a Quadrupel that I actually didn’t like as much as either of the two beers in this post). Pours a deeper, darker brown color, with only a hint of red. Again, big head with lots of bubbles and some lacing as I drink. Smell is similar, but with a hint of additional caramel. Taste is also on the similar side, but this is more complex and intense. That being said, it’s still quite drinkable. Well balanced, lots of carbonation, maybe a bit of a fuller body. As it warms, the carbonation settles down a bit, making for a smoother, boozier feel. Definitely one of my favorite dubbels, though not quite at the very top of the list. A

Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV bottled (330 ml). Drank from a goblet.

Well, what do you know? It turns out that these are technically the first dubbel-style beers I’ve reviewed on this blog. More are certainly coming! I’ve also got two St. Bernardus beers left from my variety pack, both tripels, so look for another double feature post soon.

Double Feature: Yet More IPAs

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So now that I’m totally over 2010 movies, I’ve started hitting up 2011. This past weekend, I saw Hall Pass, which had a lot of funny moments amidst a rather trite plot and some unnecessarily scatalogical humor. Among the raunchy-movies-with-a-heart genre, it was actually decent and worth a watch if that’s your thing. Far more interesting, though, was the movie I had some beers whilst watching – Rubber. You probably haven’t heard of this, but it’s a really profoundly weird film. It’s about a tire. A killer tire. Named Bob. The grand majority of the film is just watching a tire roll around on screen, occasionally stopping to make people’s head explode (my assumption is that Bob the Tire doesn’t like that we have enslaved his brethren for use on our cars, but that is only implied). There’s a lot more to it than that, of course. Bob seems to have fallen in love. And there’s an audience watching everything. And some cops trying to catch Bob. Yeah, so really weird. It’s a short film and kinda artsy-fartsy, but I loved it. It’s available now on a lot of Cable On-Demand services (I saw it on Comcast), and my understanding is that there will be a short theatrical release in early April.

As for the beers I drank whilst watching, it was another night of IPAs (this is the 4th IPA double feature – more than any other style):

Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA

Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA: Yet another “Big Beer” from Weyerbacher’s variety pack, this one actually has the best rating on Beer Advocate. The name of the beer is referring to the liberal use Simcoe hops during brewing. Simcoe has high levels of alpha acid, but it also has a very fruity aroma and taste component that makes the bitterness a little less aggressive than you may think (so says my homebrew book here, though I think Weyerbacher’s beer also kinda confirms that). If I ever end up homebrewing an IPA, I might try getting my hands on some of these. Anyway, the beer pours a cloudy darkish brown color with about a finger of head that dissapates rapidly and doesn’t leave much in the way of lacing. Smells delicious! Mostly fruity citrus hops and an almost candi-sweetness in the nose, with maybe a hint of earthiness or pine present. Very sweet start (maybe a little fruitiness), with a bitter hops kick later in the taste and the finish. Some sticky booziness comes into the aftertaste as well, but it’s reasonably well balanced with the rest of the flavors (though I think you could also argue that this is perhaps a bit too strong). Mouthfeel is smooth, with just enough carbonation to offset the booziness (though again, you may be able to argue that it’s not entirely successful in hiding the booze). All in all, quite an enjoyable beer and well worth a try for fans of the style. It’s probably my favorite of Weyerbacher’s offerings (that I’ve tried). B+

Beer Nerd Details: 9% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank from a tulip glass.

Flying Dog Raging Bitch Belgian Style IPA

Flying Dog Raging Bitch Belgian Style IPA: I’ve enjoyed Flying Dog’s beers without ever being particularly impressed, but then, I’ve only ever really had their “normal” brews. This particular beer is one of their bigger beers, and it’s also got a spot in the BA top 100. It pours a clear, light reddish brown (copper!) color with a couple fingers of head. Smells sweet, spicy and citrusy with a little bit of bready Belgian yeast and not much in the way of hops. The taste starts sweet with some spiciness in the middle and a crisp, bitter finish. There are roasted flavors in the taste as well, but not like a roasty stout. Is that pepper? It’s a familiar taste, something I normally associate with beers like Hoegaarden and Chimay Red, but it’s not as overpowering here as it is in the other beers – perhaps due to the strong hoppy bitterness. It’s really quite complex, I keep discovering new flavors. As I drink more, the bitterness becomes more prominent, the peppery flavors start to emerge more and the finish becomes more dry. Mouthfeel is a bit harsher than the Weyerbacher, but still pretty good. A really well crafted and interesting beer, though I’m not sure I actually like it. It’s amazingly complex, but I have to admit that it’s not really my thing. It’s something I’d like to try again sometime, and I can see why it’s rated so highly, but something about the way it’s spiced just isn’t working for me. B

Beer Nerd Details: 8.3% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank from a tulip glass.

Well that just about covers it. Look for some more double features soon, neither of which will be IPAs (I promise!)

St. Bernardus Abt 12

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I’m only a week behind at this point… This one is another from the St. Bernardus variety pack I got a while back:

St Bernardus Abt 12

St. Bernardus Abt 12: According to Beer Advocate, this is the 10th best beer in the world. So far, I’ve found such high praise to lead to disappointment, but I’m hoping this will be an exception to that rule. It’s a Belgian Quadruple, which is a style I generally enjoy for its rich and complex flavors. This one pours a dark brown color, tons of head right from the start of the pour. Dark fruit, bready Belgian yeast, and some spiciness (cloves) in the nose. Surprisingly even taste. Sweet and a little spicy, all the way from start to finish. The alcohol is hidden fairly well behind the malt backbone and ample carbonation, but it’s obviously there. This is an excellent beer, but something isn’t quite hitting me right with this one. I’m a little disappointed. For a quad, I expect a bit more of a full body and complex taste. Then again, I’ve been drinking pale ales and bar food all night, so perhaps my palate is shot to shit right now. I’ll give it a provisional B+ with a note that I really need to try this again sometime.

Beer Nerd Details: 10.5% ABV bottled (330 ml). Drank from a goblet.

I still have four beers left in the St. Bernardus pack, and I’m seeing a couple double features in my future…

Russian River Temptation

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Still catching up on some old tasting notes! One of the strength’s and weaknesses of the whole craft beer thing is the emphasis on local breweries. In some ways, this is a very good thing (for the local economy, for the environment, etc…), but dammit, I want to try me some west coast beers from places like The Bruery and Russian River. It’s rare to see their brews around here at all, but I’ve found a few places that regularly stock them, and have been snapping up whatever I could find from either of those breweries. A little while ago, I managed to get my hands on a couple Russian River beers and tried one of them right away.

Russian River Temptation

Russian River Temptation: Part of a series of beers by Russian River where they brew beers with Brettanomyces (a type of wild yeast that yields distinctive flavors and often matches up with sour flavors – to be honest, not something I’m tremendously familiar with), then age them in used wine barrels from local wineries. The beers are generally matched with complementary styles of wine to yield a complex flavor profile. Or something.

Temptation is a sour blond ale that is aged in French oak chardonnay barrels. It pours a clear golden color with a couple fingers of thick head that leaves ample lacing as I drink. Smells a little bready, earthy, and kinda tart, with some sweet citrus there as well… Tastes very sweet with a well balanced sour note in the finish. Some flavors are reminiscent of white wine and champagne, obviously a result of the barrel aging. There’s some fruitiness coming through as well, perhaps sour apples and grapes. It’s sour, but not overpowering like my last foray into the world of sours. This one is much more subtle in its flavors. Mouthfeel is surprisingly smooth, making for an easy drink, though I like that this came in a 375 ml bottle and not something significantly bigger. A complex and well balanced beer, one of the more interesting things I’ve had lately. I will give it a tentative A-, and am looking forward to trying some others in the series.

Beer Nerd Details: 7.25% ABV bottled (375 ml, caged and corked bottle). Drank from a tulip.

I’ve already got a bottle of Consecration in the fridge (I’m sure a review of that will be coming soon), and am kicking myself for not having picked up Supplication when I saw it a few months ago (with any luck, I will still be able to pick one up later).

Update: Ah, the glories of the internet. Since Russian River posts an absurd amount of details about the bottling of their beers, I’m able to tell you some more about my particular bottle. It was from batch 05x1F, brewed on 10/16/2009 and bottled on 7/6/2010. And I drank it on 2/12/11. Score.

Duvel

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So I’m catching up on a bunch of beers I’ve had recently. I usually jot down some notes whilst drinking, then polish them up later (and maybe throw in a movie review or write a screenplay or something), but I’ve been slacking on the polishing piece, so I’ve got about 5 more posts ready to go here. First up, one of the more common Belgian beers you’ll find in the US:

Duvel

Duvel – My true gateway into the world of craft beers was Brewery Ommegang, which was sold to Duvel Moortgat in 2003. Back in the day, I got me a case of Duvel, expecting something… Ommegangy, but I remember being a bit disappointed. It was better than most of the swill I was used to, but it wasn’t a revelation, like the Ommegang beers I’d had at the time. But that was a solid 6 or 7 years ago, so I figure it’s worth giving them another shot.

It pours a light, clear yellow/gold color with a billowy head and lots of lacing as I drink. It’s very aromatic and smells strongly of Belgian yeast, cloves, etc… Taste is very sweet with an unexpected tart finish. Hints of a lingering tart bitterness as well. Mouthfeel is a bit on the harsh side, lots of carbonation. It has a bit of a bite to it, no doubt due to the lemony tartness, but is otherwise not quite as complex as I was hoping for… It works well enough for one glass, but the entire 750ml bottle was a bit much for me and it was grating towards the end. It’s a fine beer, certainly a step up from something like, say, Stella (and a mile up from typical macro junk), but I think my initial impression way back when was probably right on. B-

Beer Nerd Details: 8.5% ABV bottled (750 ml, caged and corked bottle). Drank from a tulip.

I didn’t realize it, but I had another beer from Duvel Moortgat in my fridge (Maredsous 8, a dubbel), which I’ll be reviewing sometime this week. I liked that one better than this, but it wasn’t particularly mindblowing either.

Febrewary Beer Club

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I’m a little behind on posting stuff here, so bear with me as I play catchup this week. At the beginning of every month, a bunch of friends from work and I meet up at a local BYOB and bring some new/interesting beers to try. This particular meeting was a long time coming, as weather and a hectic holiday schedule conspired to delay this session multiple times. We went to a different BYOB this month… it’s a legitimate restaurant, and thus the mood lighting wasn’t quite conducive to picture taking, but here’s what we brought (you can click for a larger version):

Febrewary Beer Club

The theme this month was beers with a picture of an animal on the label, though there were a couple of non-qualifying beers. Conditions weren’t ideal, so no grades here, but I’ve included some thoughts on each beer:

  • Jolly Pumpkin Bam Bière – My contribution to the theme went over pretty well, though it would probably make a better summer beer than a winter one. Still, it was quite refreshing, light colored ale with a little citrus. Again, would make a great summer beer.
  • Ravenswood Zinfandel Vintners Blend – Technically, it’s “beer and wine” club, but I don’t really have a clue when it comes to wine. Still, this one was pretty good. Sweeter and less dry than I’m used to from a red wine, but whatever… Also, hard to see in the image, but the Ravenswood logo is awesome.
  • Ballast Point Sea Monster Imperial Stout – I’d call this one an above average stout, a little more on the oatmeal side of things, and a good counterpoint to the other stouts people brought. I didn’t have enough to make a good judgement though, so it’s something I want to revisit at some point…
  • Terrapin Hop Karma IPA – The first in a hoppy trio of beers from Terrapin, this one was interesting, but ultimately didn’t blow me away. Again, didn’t have a lot of this, so I should probably reserve judgement. Cool label though.
  • Terrapin Rye Pale Ale – Seemed like a pretty standard, but well executed, Americal Pale Ale. Another cool label.
  • Terrapin Hopsecutioner: Pretty standared IPA territory here, though I love the label on this one. Little guy looks like a TMNT.
  • Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot – I’m going to review this one in detail at some point in the near future, so I’ll leave it at that. I’ll just say that it seems like a pretty good European style barleywine.
  • Founders Breakfast Stout and Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout – I’ve already written about these before. Coffee drinkers seemed to like the Founders one better than me, though I don’t think anyone thought it was as good as BA says…
  • River Horse Tripel Horse – I was looking forward to this, as River Horse is one of the few semi-local breweries I’m not that familiar with, and the Tripel is one of my favorite styles. However, I found it quite disappointing. I didn’t have a lot of it, but it didn’t seem much like a Tripel at all, and it had this strange kick to it that I’m having trouble remembering.
  • Wintertraum Christkindles Gluhwein – Another wine. Sorta. Not sure how this is classified, but it was super-sweet tasting reddish wine. Not bad for what it is, I guess, but not really my thing either.

Another successful beer club! Like I said, not exactly ideal conditions for formal reviews, but a great time. The restaurant we went to was pretty good too. Not the best sushi in the area, but a welcome addition that didn’t break that bank. As usual, I’m looking forward to next month!

Adventures in Brewing – Part 3: The Tasting

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This is actually quite long overdue. I’ve already drank (or given away) more than a full case of my first attempt at homebrewing: an English Brown Ale. The general consensus is that it’s pretty good! Or it’s at least good enough that my friends don’t feel the need to insult me. As for my own feelings, I think it was a fine first attempt, but I almost wish I had started with something a little more ambitious. Still, there’s something really satisfying about enjoying the fruits of your own labor. I mean, I turned water into beer! How awesome is that? Here it is:

Homebrew #1

It’s hard to tell from the picture, but it pours a nice dark brown color, with some shades of amber, especially when you hold it up to the light. Solid sized head, but only minor lacing as I drink. Smells fantastic. It’s got a really sweet and bready smell. Taste starts off well enough. A little sweetness up front and the finish is actually rather dry. Unfortunately, it tastes a little thin to me. This is fine at the start of the glass (I think it makes a good first impression), but it’s not as satisfying as you near the end. There’s definitely no complexity at all in the taste… but then, there don’t appear to be any off flavors either. Also, I was brewing from a rather ordinary kit recipe that wasn’t really attempting any complexity, so there’s that. All in all, I think it’s probably a step up from the typical macro light lager, but it’s not going to light the world on fire either. I’ll give it a C+, which I think is probably fair.

Beer Nerd Details: 4.5% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank from a tulip glass.

I’m pretty happy with my first attempt here, but it’s clear that there’s a lot of room for improvement. I learned a lot in my first attempt though, and I’m confident that my next beer will at least be more interesting, if not exactly perfect…

Brooklyn Local 1

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I’m still making my way through 2010 movie releases, hoping to find a final gem in the rough so that I can complete a top 10, and the process is, of course, made much more fun by the imbibing of good beer! I recently caught up with The Last Exorcism and was quite pleasantly surprised. It’s not really a top 10 kinda movie, but it’s a lot better than the marketing for the film would have you believe. I don’t really want to ruin anything, but it takes the form of a mock documentary with an effective setup and conflict, though I think the resolution isn’t as satisfying as it wants to be. Still, well worth checking out for fans of horror (it’s certainly better than most recent exorcism-themed film). Perhaps it helped that I was drinking some great beer whilst watching:

Brooklyn Local 1

Brooklyn Local 1 – Pours a light, cloudy yellow/orange color with a big head that leaves some lacing as I drink. Smells fantastic – bready belgian yeast, some candi-sweetness, and lots of citrus in the nose. Sweet and spicy with a bit of a kick in the middle and a nice dry finish. A little bitterness lingers… Mouthfeel is strongly carbonated and a bit harsh, but in a good way. A lot of this reminds me of a good Belgian tripel style beer, though BA classifies it as a Belgian Strong Pale Ale. I suppose there’s a good reason for the classification that has to do with ingredients and brewing methods, but in terms of tasting this is certainly more like a tripel than the last two tripels I’ve had (Incubus and Weyerbacher Merry Monks (not reviewed yet)). All of which is to say, this is a great beer. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 9% ABV bottled (750 ml, caged and corked bottle). Drank from a tulip glass.

I guess this means I should try Local 2 (apparently a strong dark ale), eh?